It's not all about CTE and head traumas

Let’s not forget about injuries to the rest of a football player’s body

Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Quincy Black (58) gives a thumbs-up to the crowd as he leaves the field after being injured in a collision with San Diego Chargers running back Ryan Mathews.
— K.C. Alfred

Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Quincy Black (58) gives a thumbs-up to the crowd as he leaves the field after being injured in a collision with San Diego Chargers running back Ryan Mathews.
— K.C. Alfred

Might some of this be the result of machismo? Maybe. Could the yearning for victory be that overwhelming? Perhaps.

More than anything, though -- missing games could theoretically cost these guys millions of dollars, and if you can show me the 20-something male who would risk forfeiting that, I’ll show you the sumo wrestler moonlighting as a jockey.

That said, while athletes in the present don’t worry about their future, when the future finally comes, they often regret the past. But if we keep discussing the potential consequences, if we give as much attention to damage done below the neck as we do above, maybe that will change.

Nick Hardwick may not want to talk about these injuries, but it’s important that the rest of us do.